My (hopefully) last word on Space City Comic Con

I’m not sure how I should go about summing up my time here in Houston for Space City Comic Con. Initially, I was excited about attending a con in a place I used to live, one that had put together an incredible lineup of guests, becoming a veritable Sons of Anarchy reunion. I even defended the event here when they were sued by the Greater Houston Convention and Visitors Bureau.

And, my personal travel difficulties notwithstanding, I was really looking forward to the event, although I was, perhaps, a bit disappointed by the number of artists and vendors. It seemed like there could have been many more fit in without reducing the crowd’s ability to move around.

But today, it just felt like I was going through the motions. After yesterday’s fiasco with the cast of Sons of Anarchy, it just felt like I was walking around a graveyard. Yes, the cast showed up today and was signing autographs for the fans, but it still just felt a bit like that Thanksgiving dinner where you keep waiting for your crazy uncle to have that one more drink that just sends him over the edge and turns the whole event into a shit-show.

Today, I spent the morning listening to how the event organizers hadn’t paid people (not just the Sons of Anarchy cast) on time, were uncommunicative or just flat-out missing, and that is enough to have soured me on Space City. And as I have since read that the event has existed under other names in previous years, and that the problems I am seeing now have existed in those incarnations, I legitimately worry for the future of the event. How an event can draw so much talent and apparently be so horribly run from an executive standpoint is beyond my understanding.

I hate reporting bad things about an event. I like talking about how much fun they are. I’m not afraid to point out when things are messed up, but I don’t like it.

Next year, I’ll save the money and stay in Utah and hit a closer event. Or maybe I’ll try to get back to Dallas Fan Expo, or even Comicpalooza, if I feel like returning to Houston.